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From: halle1@houxz.UUCP (J.HALLE)
Newsgroups: net.physics
Subject: Re: Nuclear Fusion
Message-ID: <518@houxz.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 26-Sep-83 09:05:52 EDT
Article-I.D.: houxz.518
Posted: Mon Sep 26 09:05:52 1983
Date-Received: Wed, 28-Sep-83 06:37:31 EDT
References: <597@purdue.UUCP>
Organization: Bell Labs, Holmdel NJ
Lines: 39

I really wish people would not spout off on subjects about
which they know nothing.  Fusion waste?
If you had read and understood the article, you would
realize that there is no waste, at least none that was any trouble.
Fusion works by "fusing" together several hydrogen molecules,
either as pure H in some isotopic form, or water.  (There are
other potential materials also, but the principles are the
same.)  No radioactive materials are produced by the process
that are not contained.  No toxic chemicals are produced.  An
extremely clean operation.  Unfortunately, it also requires
conditions we cannot produce yet.  Don't expect anything until
next century.

As for the waste problem with fisson.  This problem has been solved
many times and the solutions have been known for years.  The
problems are pure and simply POLITICS and FEAR.  The thought of
nuclear anything terrifies people (witness your question that
prompted this reply).  Unless you can guarantee 100% (make that
100^100%) that the waste can't escape, even if it is harmless,
people will scream.  And screaming people catch politicians
ears.  There is absolutely no problem disposing of nuclear
wastes safely.

What makes this fear of nuclear waste so absurd is that there is
no noise whatsoever about waste from other forms of energy.  The
worst offender is coal.  The products of coal mining, milling,
and use are among the most toxic substances known to man.  And
there has been little done about disposing of these wastes safely.
One day's production of coal waste products is far more toxic than
all the nuclear wastes produced to date.  These wastes are then
just buried or left sitting in slag heaps.  (Drive through the
northeast Pennsylvania countryside some time to see how these
wastes are "disposed".)  But coal is not "dangerous" so it is
not a problem.

If you can figure out and implement a way to dispose of those
wastes as cleanly and safely as has already been done for nuclear
wastes, then and only then will I entertain your comments about
nuclear waste.